Das Race: My '97 M3/4/5

[WRXtranceformed]

The worst is out of class racing...
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Wow did that dude just brake check you?? What a douche canoe

[rherold9]

The worst is out of class racing...
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://youtu.be/0jEatRvzeSk">https://youtu.be/0jEatRvzeSk</a><!-- m -->

Wow did that dude just brake check you?? What a douche canoe

I believe he has another video of that Mustang at Summit? Doing other stupid stuff.

[*insertusernamehere*]

What in the ever loving fuck was the mustang doing??

[JPolen01]

I remember seeing that video or something very similar last season.

[Jake]

"June Joust" at Summit Point

It's officially summertime and the weather at Summit Point was a constant reminder. It was H-O-T all weekend.

Saturday's qualifying was cut very short by a Spec E46 who dropped a wheel around T8ish, spun and stuffed it nose-first into the tires on driver's right. The car looked mostly fixable but the track was put under full-course red and every tow truck, ambulance and fire truck was sent out. That's what they called for when I crashed my car back in late 2015 so I guess this looked about as bad initially. The driver was fine but the impact had moved some tire bundles, so EV had to get that cleaned up and his car towed in. T&S used the single green lap that everyone got to determine race order.

Joey caught me on the one green lap:



Saturday's race was fun. I had qualified sixth and ended up finishing fifth - later updated to fourth after Chris got DQ'd for blowing the dyno by one whole horsepower. Bummer for him but more points for me :thumbup:

Sunday saw a full qual session, and I went a bit faster than the day prior (personal best of a 1:25.9 I believe) but still wasn't good enough for more than 6th place in the starting lineup.

The Sunday race was 40 minutes long and incredibly demanding on both the cars and drivers. Sunday's high was around 93* and that meant a slow, slick track and tires that couldn't give their all either. The benefit (or downside?) of such a long race versus the 25 minutes on Saturday is that even when you think you've secured a position, you haven't. There is plenty of time for the order to get shifted, and shifted, and shifted again. And maybe one more time.

I was up to fourth at one point but was focused on staying clean given this race was the last of my "Rookie" status (8 races in total) and I didn't end last month's VIR adventures in a positive way. Given the lack of grip, "staying clean" meant staying somewhat slow and not pushing to get ahead. I gave up position to Mark and John but stuck to their tails in the final laps.

We finally took the white flag and I was ON Mark's tail for the second half of the lap. Somewhere in that second half, Eric Wong came up on the three of us having a battle. He was not with anyone in his class so he hung back and let us go. We got through T10 onto the straightaway and I noticed him square behind me in the mirror as I closed in on Mark. Then... *thump* and suddenly that gap has closed a bit more. I slammed it into 5th and got alongside Mark, but the entire maneuver required another 200' or so to really get my nose ahead of his for the finish. So, I took 6th (of 9) but it was such a fun photo finish to end a great battle.

Jack Cobetto got a great shot from some time on Sunday:



And here's Sunday's race. The start is fun to watch and the last 3 minutes or so are pretty good.

[youtube]Fa9MgJi_giU[/youtube]

Next Up...
VIR is next in mid-August as our July event at Dominion was cancelled. I need to address a leaky power steering rack, build a Cool Shirt cooler, and give 'er an oil change. I'm also in cahoots with Tom to perhaps give the car some visual updates, if the money shakes out.

[rherold9]

Seriously, nice move on the outside of T1 to get passed them before T3 :thumbup:

You're driving has gotten better and you are for sure feeling more confident/comfortable judging by watching your videos. Congrats. You'll get faster and you are doing well for not having a super prepped GTS2 car...

[*insertusernamehere*]

Nooooicee

[Scott]

Saturday's qualifying was cut very short by a Spec E46 who dropped a wheel around T8ish, spun and stuffed it nose-first into the tires on driver's right. The car looked mostly fixable but the track was put under full-course red and every tow truck, ambulance and fire truck was sent out. That's what they called for when I crashed my car back in late 2015 so I guess this looked about as bad initially. The driver was fine but the impact had moved some tire bundles, so EV had to get that cleaned up and his car towed in..

The crash was impressive to watch, he hit the tires and got some serious airtime. I was over at the garages when it happened. The most disturbing part was the time it took EV to get to the scene, for whatever reason they didn't have EV parked a the "baker" entrance on that side of the track. It could of been really bad.

[Jake]

The crash was impressive to watch, he hit the tires and got some serious airtime. I was over at the garages when it happened. The most disturbing part was the time it took EV to get to the scene, for whatever reason they didn't have EV parked a the "baker" entrance on that side of the track. It could of been really bad.

I was stopped on the little straightaway between T3 and T4, and it was pretty clear that all of the emergency vehicles rolled out of the main paddock/pit road. I know at VIR we keep some EV at the south paddock, not sure what is the norm at Summit. Given the various incidents we've had during qualifying, it definitely makes sense to split the resources if we have enough to do so.

[Scott]

The crash was impressive to watch, he hit the tires and got some serious airtime. I was over at the garages when it happened. The most disturbing part was the time it took EV to get to the scene, for whatever reason they didn't have EV parked a the "baker" entrance on that side of the track. It could of been really bad.

I was stopped on the little straightaway between T3 and T4, and it was pretty clear that all of the emergency vehicles rolled out of the main paddock/pit road. I know at VIR we keep some EV at the south paddock, not sure what is the norm at Summit. Given the various incidents we've had during qualifying, it definitely makes sense to split the resources if we have enough to do so.

SCCA does it for every event. I'm not sure why NASA doesn't :dunno: I don't remember from my past NASA races if that's a change or not, just an observation from this weekend.

[Jake]

SCCA does it for every event. I'm not sure why NASA doesn't :dunno: I don't remember from my past NASA races if that's a change or not, just an observation from this weekend.

I feel like we typically do it for the races themselves, just not sure about qualifying.

[Senor_Taylor]

Joey and I were about 200 yards from the crash when it happened and I guess I realize now how long they took to get there. Also, an NC Miata sped out there to the scene too, which I found odd. I think one of those F350s was the first there.

[Scott]

[quote="Senor_Taylor". Also, an NC Miata sped out there to the scene too, which I found odd.[/quote]

That was Chris White the track manager

[Jake]

August 2017 - Unkefer Memorial at VIR

I never posted anything after VIR and I'm sitting here at the beach celebrating four years of owning this fucking car, so have a copypasta from my blog:

My trip to VIR started on a good note, though traffic quickly became unbearable. College move-ins, beach travelers and the upcoming solar eclipse meant everyone felt the need to be on I-95 on Friday afternoon. Thankfully, things eased up once I got past Richmond.



Saturday’s qualifying went well enough. I qualified somewhere mid-pack and we took the green flag for the race around 2:30 PM. I started working my way through traffic and after a few laps, caught Jason in his 323is. Right now, my torque advantage (almost 80 ft/lbs) helps me get ahead out of the turns – but he’s building a 3.1L stroker motor out of a Z3. I’ll have to step up my game once that gets installed!

After getting past Jason, I set my sights on Mark and slowly reeled him in. I was stuck to his bumper as we came out of the climbing esses, and elected to take the pass at T10. There was room to pass with enough degree of safety, although I likely wouldn’t tempt fate a second time there. “If you need a straight, make a straight” worked as I dropped my left two wheels in the grass, straddled the curb and got past Mark.

Those two passes had me in a solid 3rd place as the checkered flag waved. My competitor Luke ended up being disqualified due to being underweight for his claimed horsepower, so the field was shifted up and I left the awards party with a 2nd place trophy.



Sunday morning started off on a different note. I changed into my racing suit, hopped in the car and turned the key to head to grid. “Guhguhguhguh” from the starter, and nothing from the engine. It was cranking its heart out and not turning over. Crap.

With five minutes called on grid, I quickly checked fuel pump fuses but could not determine the problem. I took my suit off, and Tom and Taylor came by to help diagnose. I would not qualify, and would start the 12:05 race at the back of the GTS2 field.

Tom started probing his multimeter around to figure out where the break in power was. We figured out that the DME (engine computer) was not getting power, thus the fuel pump was not getting power with the ignition. It was all traced back to… my kill switch on the dash. We rewired a few things and I was ready for the race.

Heat cycles on tires is a very sensitive topic among racers. The more money you make, the fewer HCs you allow to accumulate before deeming the tires “trash” and replacing them. At $1,200 a set, that can get spendy if you have other bills to pay. I chose to run the BF Goodrich R1 this year as they are very grippy, but last quite a bit longer than the competitor Hoosier R7.

The tires had completely given it up on Sunday. They have grip left, but not enough to be competitive. I finished the race in 4th place, and added up the heat cycles once I got out of the car. I’ve put about 25 HCs on these tires! Talk about getting your money’s worth.



We’ve got a few race weekends left in the year – Summit Point in September and VIR again in early October. That’ll conclude the “normal” season, and then I’ll load up the trailer and head (very) south to Sebring International Raceway in Florida, for our East Coast Championships at the end of October. Should be an exciting way to wrap up the year.

[youtube]yvlEP4_PpiQ[/youtube]

I am working on moving into DC proper, which means a bunch of things have to be changed up and I won't have a garage. The E36 is sticking around but will not be stored at my place anymore. More updates to come.

[Jake]

September 2017 - Full Auto at Summit Point

Track weekends in the fall are some of my favorite – the weather tends to be ideal for a weekend outside, which means drivers and engines alike are a bit more perky. This past weekend at Summit Point was no exception, with crisp 50* mornings and highs in the mid-70s both days.

It’s always fun wondering which of your track friends you’ll run into on the journey out of town – this time, I shared the Dulles Greenway and Route 7 with Navin, Will, and Jon at various points. We all made it to the track around 6:30 PM and unloading was quick.

Saturday
The last time I was at Summit Point was my first time driving the track with aero on the car. I was fairly nervous (read: slow) then, and was eager to get back out there for practice to get my “sea legs” again. Our Saturday practice was unfortunately cut short by an American Iron Mustang, who crashed hard enough between T4 and T5 to require black flagging the session after just half of the first green lap. Dang. (The driver, thankfully, was okay)

The Thunder group had downtime until early afternoon, which gave me plenty of time to check fluids and swap wheels to my Kosei K1s, with fresh BFGoodrich R1’s. Phil and Kim of Phil’s Tire Service deserve kudos for not only getting the tires when most other suppliers could not, and then a quick mounting turnaround Saturday morning.

Saturday’s qualifying was unremarkable, I qualified fifth of six and focused on where I could pick up speed for the race. The race was a quick one at just 20 minutes, so I didn’t have much time to work through traffic. I got past Matt, and stuck to John’s bumper but kept throwing away chances to pass, and thus it took most of the race to get past him. Once I did, I set my sights on Mark. Right as I was reeling him in, the checkered flag dropped. Another lap or two and I’d have had him.

I finished fourth, but was awarded second place Saturday evening after Chris and Scott (our 1st/2nd place finishers) both blew the dyno by ~8 horsepower.









Sunday
My parents and some family friends came out to watch the race, and they couldn’t have picked a better one to spectate! I sent them over to the Carousel and they posted up at Turn 8. The race was 40 minutes long, which I was looking forward to as I would have more of a chance to pick through the field and hopefully secure a decent finish.

The green flag dropped and it was game time. We were hustling as a GTS2 pack which was a lot of fun, and I was holding a solid 4th place position while working toward catching Mark again. Matt ended up getting past me, which put a damper on that plan. And then, a newer Viper blew his engine at the end of the front straight. The debris flag came out and I seized the opportunity to (according to Mark) “pull a Cole Trickle” and pass both Mark and Matt amid the smokescreen. It worked and I found myself in third as the double-yellows came out.

We followed the pace car around single-file for a few laps and prepared for the restart. The green flag dropped and within a lap, Mark had re-secured his position in third. I was holding Matt off but my lead was very slim. Finally, the white flag came out. “Just hold him off for one more lap.” Naturally, I botched Turn 1 and Matt snuck past with better exit speed. He held me off for the rest of that final lap, leaving me with a fifth-place finish.

My personal result on Sunday was a bit disappointing, but we all pulled in to the paddock with huge smiles. Forty minutes of nose-to-tail racing is how every single race should be. It was tremendous fun and we all exchanged position repeatedly, while fighting to secure what little lead we may have had. And, we kept it clean, with no donuts or bumps. The GTS2 guys are really a class act and I am glad to be racing with them.





Crashes
Charlie dropped two wheels in the grass in the Carousel and his Spec E30 spun across track, impacting the tire wall at T8. Navin was door-to-door with a fellow Honda Challenge racer, racing to the finish line, and was accidentally pushed off track in a defensive move gone awry. He impacted the tires at the end of pit road, catching some serious air before coming to a stop.

In both cases, the drivers walked themselves into the ambulance to be examined, and the only outcome was a broken rib from Charlie’s impact. The crashes and results speak volumes about the importance of quality safety equipment. For those getting faster in HPDE or competing in Time Trial – make safety a focus! Racers are required to have a lot of this gear, HPDE and TT are not. It’s saved my (literal) neck at least once in Time Trial, and the investment is worth it.





The M3 will be getting a new steering rack to replace the (incredibly) leaky rack. Otherwise, it should be all ready to go for VIR in early October!

[Senor_Taylor]

I got a chance to watch some of the Sunday race from the Carousel. Good work! Hopefully you can get a little faster once the tires are all broken in!

[ScottyB]

ugh, sucks about Navin's EG. that was a sweet little car.

nice driving Jake! still fun to watch you continually up your game. great to hear it was a solid, clean race and a positive weekend.

[Jake]

I'm home from VIR Oktoberfast and working on that video/data/writeup, but in the meantime figured I should update the thread with some work that's been done to the car in the past few months.

DJ's crash scared me and a few others into finally reinforcing our rear trailing arm pockets. I took the car to Uncle Deren at Mach V and he welded in the reinforcement plates from AKG. Thanks Deren!

The welding required removal of the gas tank, and in the process Deren cracked a vent tube and didn't notice. I only noticed when I got to VIR in August and saw fuel on my trailer as the car bounced around with a full tank. So, I took the car back to him (it was fine to drive, just smelly, on track) and he fixed the leak. While he had it, he also installed a replacement steering rack (thanks, DJ) and re-aligned the car.

It's pretty nice knowing my trailing arms will stay right where they belong, and that the steering rack won't puke fluid everywhere due to simply existing.

[Jake]

October 2017 - Oktoberfast at VIR

The Races
Oktoberfast is a unique event in that we run two normal points races, as well as a “fun race” on Sunday that is class-less aside from the large Thunder or Lightning designation. After setting a new personal best in qualifying Saturday morning, with a 2:12.2, I gridded up for the first points race.

My start was great, settling in behind Chris in an attempt to hold 3rd place away from Mark, Matt, and Vinh (a visitor from NASA Northeast). Vinh flew past Mark, Matt and I which left the three of us battling for 4th place. Both of them snuck past me in succession as I blew a turn. Unfortunately, two Mustangs suffered mechanical failures and a friend in his ST3 BMW lost brakes, hitting the tires at Turn 1 – all within the same lap or two. The field was put under full-course caution and I hoped to use the single-file restart to get back ahead of Mark and Matt. There was not enough time for cleanup and a restart, though, so we took the checkered flag under caution and I finished 6th.

The second points race started off similarly, but Mark and Matt got ahead early and traffic kept us apart. However, I held off Vinh for the entirety of the race and was feeling good. We took the white flag and I vowed to keep focus for the final lap. This resulted in my losing focus at Turn 10, taking it a hair too wide, and having to drive straight down the hill toward Oak Tree in the dirt.

Amid some smoke from a rear shock failure thanks to 90+ mph off-roading, I realized that fluids were still where they belonged, Vinh was still behind me, and I should press on – so I did. Chris grabbed a killer photo of me bouncing off the inside curb of Oak Tree as I put the hammer back down.



Losing the left rear shock proved to be a downfall through the rollercoaster and I could not maintain sufficient speed. Vinh caught up, and passed me mere feet before the checkered flag. A disappointment, yes, but the second of two well-fought races.

Due to the blown shock, I couldn’t compete in the fun race on Sunday. Ah well, next year.

Giving a Ride
Oktoberfast was also the first NASA weekend my boyfriend could attend. He isn’t a “car guy” per se, but finds the whole amateur racing hobby fascinating and wanted to get a glimpse of my world. We talked ahead of time about how things would go and the rides he could take if he wanted. Chris Cobetto, the NASA Mid-Atlantic director, spent a bit of time with the two of us on Friday night and was very excited to not only discuss some driving basics but also offer a ride in his Spec E30 if there was time.

Our chief pace car drive, Aaron, took him on a couple of pace laps on Saturday morning to show the layout of the track at a “reasonable” speed. I then took him out in my friend Matt’s car for a pace lap so he could experience my driving at a mild pace. He liked the pace laps and agreed to riding shotgun in a HPDE 4 session in my racecar.

So, at 2:00, I got him all strapped in and stuck the earpiece of a borrowed Chatterbox (thanks, Jim) in each of our helmets. We talked throughout our time on grid and I promised to talk about what I was going to do before doing it once we took the green.

“My race pace is somewhere around a 2:12-2:13 in this car, I suspect we’ll do about a 2:20 or so – just so you know I’ll be going fast enough but not pushing.”

I slowly ramped up the speed and by the second green lap we were moving at a decent pace. I got permission on the third lap to give it the beans through the flat and uphill esses, jumping the curbs in pursuit of more speed. We pulled in after another lap, with the AIM reading “2:20” on the dashboard and Jonathan talking about everything that was equal parts fun and very different from street driving. Definitely a great “first ride” and I suspect he’ll be up for more hot laps in the future.

2017 Season Summary
I never really thought I’d go to Competition School when I started doing HPDE in a borrowed white Miata, seven years ago today (convenient timing, Facebook Memories). I still didn’t think I’d go when I was solidly invested in Time Trial. And somehow I ended up going because “it was time” and “I was ready” and “you’ll have so much fun” and everything else my friends told me.



And they were so right.

My goal for the 2017 season was “don’t be last.” I achieved that goal, for the most part, with some pretty solid finishes. I learned so much about racecraft and judgement calls, drove faster and more consistently than I ever had, and embraced and enjoyed the legitimate, honest, close competition that is wheel-to-wheel with the Mid-Atlantic GTS2 guys. The fact that the front-runners want to review my data, watch my video, and offer tips on how to get faster speaks volumes.

We are absolutely “friends between every checkered and green.” 2018 will only see more speed and more success, and I cannot wait to get back out there next year with the same crowd – perhaps with a few new and returning faces.



The Road to Sebring
NASA has our East Coast Championships this year at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. I'm leaving on Tuesday with the car in tow. DJ was able to get me a set of spare Koni Yellows to throw on last night while I wait on Ground Control to deal with my own shocks.

Unfortunately, the left rear wheel is still contacting the inner wheel well. The alignment back there is fucked, somehow. I called Deren last night and he will take the car this Sunday morning and see what the alignment rack tells him. He thinks the toe may have been pushed around given how hard I took the off-roading trip. Or, the upper control arm may be bent. Thankfully, I have two new ones sitting in the garage that I will bring to him "just in case."

Fingers crossed it's nothing too major and I can leave as planned in a few short days!

[Senor_Taylor]

That's really cool that he's interested in racing a little and you got to take him out. I remember taking Kelsey on a ride at an autocross and she was just blown away that someone could drive a car like that.

Sucks about the off-road trip. I'm surprised you keep doing it even though you have the range Rover for that. Best of luck at Sebring!

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